Coffee Cupping Insights | What It Is and Why It’s Important
By Aliisa Oake
Coffee is a complex beverage in terms of flavors, which can be tasted simultaneously or over time. Coffee flavors and the overall taste of coffee can vary dramatically with temperature and according to the genetics of the seed in how it’s grown, processed, stored, roasted, and so on. Due to coffee flavors being so sensitive and unpredictable, it’s sometimes difficult to taste these differences, with aromas, textures, and flavors being taken into account. In evaluating and classifying specific qualities of coffee, a tasting method called coffee cupping is utilized. When cupping coffee, different factors are considered and different protocols are followed. In this blog, we’ll discuss what’s involved in coffee cupping, and why it’s important when analyzing specialty coffee flavors.
What is the Coffee Cupping Method?
Credits to Sara B. Gilliam
Coffee cupping is a method that allows professionals to evaluate, classify, and score coffee based on classified aspects. When cupping coffee, it involves brewing freshly roasted coffee in a specific way, where coffee attributes are then further identified, such as body, mouthfeel, acidity, sweetness, and aftertaste. The Specialty Coffee Association developed a cupping protocol, which has become a worldwide industry standard where any coffee ranked on a scale better 1 and 100 that scores over 80 points is considered specialty grade coffee.
Here’s the equipment that’s typically needed for cupping coffee:
Brewing Water: high quality, purified water
A Kettle: water between 96ºC and 100ºC
A Grinder: grind size should be medium-fine to maximize extraction during the brew phase
Coffee Cupping Bowls: should have a 175-300mL capacity
Coffee Cupping Spoons: any spoon deep enough to carry a good amount of liquid. Proper coffee cupping spoon are designed to carry in such a way to make the “slurping” part of cupping easy
Various Glasses of Water: used to rinse the cupping spoon
Analyzing coffee flavors and qualities through cupping
Aspects Involved When Cupping Coffee
Coffee cupping can be thought of as a simple brewing process is used where the different coffees being sampled are treated equally.
To start the process, hot water is poured directly onto coarsely ground coffee and left to steep for three to five minutes. A layer of coffee grounds will float to the surface, which is known as the “crust”. The crust is gently broken with the cupping spoon three times, and then the coffee is sniffed to assess coffee fragrance and aroma.
The remaining coffee grounds will begin to float, which should be carefully removed from the surface using two cupping spoons. The taster then samples the coffee using a “slurping” method, which allows the coffee to spread over the tongue and palate — a method used when trying to taste all the coffee flavors. This can be done a few times to accurately taste different notes and qualities, which should be noted on a ranked sheet of paper, or coffee cupping form. The Specialty Coffee Association has created a system used for evaluating coffee which they have available for download on their website.
The attribute categories include coffee fragrance/aroma, flavor, aftertaste, acidity, body, uniformity, balance, clean cup, sweetness, and the overall profile.
Key Considerations in Coffee Cupping Sessions:
When cupping coffee is conducted, the taste must consider different factors of the coffee. These factors should be considered based on the following descriptions:
Fragrance and Aroma: Coffee fragrance is the smell of the coffee when it has been ground and still dry. Aroma relates to the smell that the coffee gets when it’s brewed in hot water. Fresh coffee will have a stronger aroma than older, or stale coffee, making it taste better. Aroma notes are best captured at the moment that the crust of the grounds is broken during a coffee cupping.
Flavor: The most distinct taste of coffee is found in its flavor, which can be captured from the palate into the nose, otherwise known as taste. To score the coffee flavors, considerations involve the coffee’s intensity, quality, and complexity. This can lead to sweet, sour, salty, umami, bitter, or a combination of flavors.
Aftertaste: The aftertaste is the lingering taste that you are left with after sipping the coffee. Sometimes you may taste additional flavors that weren’t present in the initial sip, which enhances the overall cup. There may also be a bitterness or dry, lingering feeling in the mouth.
Acidity: Acidity is sometimes referred to as brightness, the coffee’s acidity is generally considered a positive attribute. The acidity of coffee can be seen in flavors that might taste tangy, in lemons, citruses, or strawberries. The roast of the coffee can also affect its acidity, so the darker the roast, the more acidic the coffee may taste.
Body: This can be considered as the weight, mouthfeel, or consistency of the coffee and is sometimes described as thick, heavy, or rich. A coffee’s body can be discovered by paying attention to what the tongue feels after swallowing the coffee. Thick-bodied coffee can give you a sense of drinking whole milk, where light-bodied coffee has the same texture that watered-down drinks have on your tongue.
Balance: Refers to the compliments the different coffee flavors give each other in how well aromatics, flavors, sweetness, and aftertaste work together. A well-balanced cup of coffee is typically referred to as being smooth.
Cleanliness: For a cup of coffee to be clean, it means that there are no flavor defects present and each cup of coffee is the same. If a coffee is clean, it means that it tastes smooth and there aren’t any specific flavors that stand out or taste off.
Sweetness or Bitterness: Sweetness is a mild, smooth flavor characteristic that doesn’t have any harsh tastes, which is often perceived as a palatable or fruity taste. Typically, Arabica is considered to be of higher quality than Robusta beans due to sweetness found in the cup. Flavor attributes in this category can be tasted in various ways such as through the sweetness of fruit, caramel, honey, or molasses.
Believe it or not, bitterness is desirable in a coffee, but only to some extent, particularly in a darker roast or espresso. Too much bitterness will create an unpleasant taste, especially if it’s created by over-extracting in the brewing process, using too fine of a grind, or making too small of an amount of coffee.
Complexity: When this description is used when cupping coffee or discovering coffee flavor attributes, it means that the coffee possesses an intricacy in its aromas, flavors, and other qualities. Calling a coffee “complex” makes it possible to capture the tasting experience with just one word.
Sample of SCAA Coffee Cupping Form
The Importance of Coffee Cupping
Coffee cupping is more than just a technical process, but a sensory journey that further connects us with the coffee we drink in its purest form. When practicing cupping coffee, brewers are able to learn, develop, and grow their knowledge of the vast tastes of coffee and how to better classify the quality of coffee beans. Cupping is also helpful in promoting quality control, palate development, and being able to accurately describe coffee flavors.
By being able to profile different coffee flavors, coffee professionals are able to understand the unique characteristics of different types of coffee beans depending on their varieties and origin (where the coffee is grown). Each cup of coffee tells a story that reflects the unique terror, cultivation, and processing techniques from the region it came from. Professionals, or Coffee Q Graders, evaluate specialty coffee for quality and consistency so that defects or flavor-related issues can be identified early on and adjustments on the production side can be made.
Cupping coffee is essential in classifying specialty coffee and controlling the quality of the product. This method is also beneficial for producers because when defects are identified early on, producers can alter their practices to improve production and processing methods. Additionally, when producers understand what their cupping score means, they can use it as a negotiating tool in selling green coffee beans — creating confidence when asking buyers for better prices.
Overall, cupping coffee is essential when classifying specialty coffees, but it also benefits all members of the coffee supply chain. It allows producers, exporters, roasters, and consumers to be able to understand and communicate what they can expect coffee flavors to be. This assists with educating people about the intricacies of coffee, its unique attributes, and the authenticities involved in specialty coffees from different regions — creating a differentiating factor in a competitive market. When specialty coffees are ranked highly, they stand out from other coffee growing regions, which supports the overall growth of producers and the coffee industry.
Explaining Coffee Cupping Score to La Suiza Cooperative Member
How De La Gente Educates Our Partner Producers with Coffee Cupping
De La Gente takes part in coffee cupping for more reasons than just tasting the coffee for aromas, flavors, and scoring purposes. We utilize this method to give feedback to our partner coffee producers so that they can improve their cultivation practices for the next harvest or make any changes in processing their specialty coffee beans.
When working with our partner cooperatives, De La Gente educates each member about coffee farm related issues and defects that may occur when coffee is grown, harvested, processed, and stored. For instance, green coffee beans are highly absorbent to their surroundings, especially if they aren’t stored correctly. Coffee flavors can quickly be altered during the cultivation process, so poor labor practices can have an impact on the coffee’s profile. Care and consistency must be emphasized and maintained during the entire seed to cup process. Providing education and sharing knowledge with producers about all aspects involved in specialty coffee and creating a better understanding through coffee cupping and scoring is an essential step towards creating a deepened understanding of what coffee consumers typically gravitate towards.
Additionally, when producers are able to understand some of the differentiating factors in specialty coffee and what makes their coffee unique, it serves as a powerful negotiating tool when selling their specialty coffee. This gives producers the confidence to be able to ask buyers for better prices, especially after it’s been scored. Knowing the purpose of cupping coffee and grading encourages producers to cultivate higher quality coffee, position their coffee in higher market segments, and obtain a higher income for their work. This not only leads to better pricing but also fosters a sense of pride and ownership over their products.
About the Author
My name is Aliisa Oake, I’m a Marketing and Communications Intern at De La Gente with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and a minor International Business. I’m a coffee lover from New Jersey with a passion for coffee, supporting the industry, along with supporting local communities and sustainable initiatives. I’m excited to work with De La Gente and learn more about Guatemala’s coffee!
